How I Save Money on UK Train Fares

If you live in the United Kingdom, one common and convenient public transportation that allow you to reach every town is by train.

The train tickets in UK are not cheap. Depending on the journey, network, class and time, it can get really expensive. Over the two years of living in this county, I have discovered hacks on how to save money on my train tickets and I would like to share them with you.

1. Book your trip in advance

This is a basic saving option to save money from train costs. In my recent experience, Instead of paying a regular fare of £60, I was able to go to London, paying only £17 for two-way tickets from Birmingham New Street to London Euston.

2. Avoid the peak times

Another basic tip if you want to save is not to travel during the rush hours. Aside from the crowd, you would be avoiding the expensive ticket costs.

3. Get a railcard

With a wide range of Railcard options,you can save 1/3 off your rail fares. This helped me to save when my mother and I went to Scotland. I got us a Two Together Railcard, a discount card for two adults travelling together. I had to pay £30 to get the card which is valid for a year. For more information and to see other options, visit https://www.railcard.co.uk/.

4. Split train tickets

SplitTicketing.com is such a great option to save money on your train tickets. I used this to book our train tickets to Edinburgh and it was so easy because we only had to switch to the seats opposite of us, we didn’t even have to leave the train. With SplitTicketing, we only paid £115 for two 2-way tickets to Edinburgh from Birmingham New Street. Had I not used this service and the TwoTogether Railcard, I would have paid £250 for that trip. Isn’t that amazing!? Visit https://www.splitticketing.com/to book your tickets.

5. Buy two single tickets instead of return

You will be surprised how two single tickets can actually get cheaper than a return ticket especially if you know the definite time of the train you are getting back.

6. If you’re in the West Midlands, consider getting a Swift card.

I am a Swift card holder. It is an easy and flexible way to travel the west midlands. This is what I use to travel to work on a train daily. My two-way fare would normally cost me £6.80 a day – that would be £136 for 20 days! But because I have a swift card, I only pay £64.50 a month! With this card, I have an unlimited train travel in a month on standard class services within the specified Network West Midlands Rail Zone. Aside from the adult season tickets, they also offer Child season tickets, pay as you go and 16-18 photocards. For more information, visit https://www.networkwestmidlands.com/swift/swift-ticket-finder/?DoSearch=true&TransportModeTrain=true&PassengerType=Adult&DurationMonth=true.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Joy is a Filipino expat who moved from the Philippines to United Kingdom in 2016. A busy mum to a cute little boy and a loving wife to her British husband, she works as a financial assistant in the hospitality industry and explores the joy of new discoveries one mile at a time. She is an avid traveller, photography enthusiast, food lover and a thriller movie junkie who drinks coffee no less than twice a day.